Shock and surprise: men are stupid babies when they’re sick. They whine, they sniffle, they insist no one has ever been as sick as they are right now. It doesn’t matter in the least that YOU were this sick with the EXACT SAME THING a week ago, there’s no way your bout with the crud was as deadly as theirs.
At my mom’s insistence, I went to the doctor last week to find out that the thing that was making me sound like a three-pack-a-day smoker who had developed tuberculosis and bubonic plague was actually just a viral crud. Didn’t even get a shot of antibiotics.
But when my husband came down with it and I talked him out of driving all the way to Atlanta to check himself into the CDC, he discovered something different: it was just a viral crud. Wait, that’s not different at all. That’s exactly what I found out. He called me from the pharmacy where he was waiting for his prescriptions, and it didn’t matter that I could describe his medications AND the doctor’s neck tie, even though I hadn’t been within twenty miles of the clinic at the time.
ME: “Lemme guess, he checked your blood work and said it was viral, then gave you four prescriptions.”
HIM: “Yeah, but these aren’t the same four prescriptions you got.”
ME: “You got Alleve, Zyrtec, some steroids, and a coughing pill.”
HIM: “No! So there, smarty pants.” (Only it sounded like “Tho-there, sthmarty pahts,” because he’s stuffed up.)
ME: “Those are the every day names for them. They have different druggie names. And you also got a shot.”
HIM: “Ha! You’re wrong! I got TWO shots!”
ME: “It was the same shot, dufus! You just got two doses, one in each hip!”
HIM: silence
ME: “Right?”
HIM: “When I get home with my steroids, I’m gonna roid rage on you.”
ME: “Good luck, buddy, I’ve been on my steroids for a week. I will fold you like a cheap road map.”
HIM: “I want ice cream.”
ME: “Then you might want to buy some while you’re at the store.”
Lorca Damon 
I have long claimed that if I should ever be diagnosed with breast cancer, my hubz will instantly one-up me with testicular cancer. And HIV. What is it with men? Why is illness such a damn competition with them? *grrr*
Because if they can be sicker than you, you still have to take the garbage out and cook for them. If you’re sick and they’re well, they might have to take care of you!
Yeah. I just spent 5 days taking care of Mr. Zombie-shufflin’ virus spreader. He contaminated every single room in the house. Of course now that I’ve nursed him back to health and he’s returned to work, I’m sick with his Zombie shit.
At least I had the sick pleasure of giving this to him first! You poor thing!
You’re so lucky…
Lemme guess. While you were sick, the world continued to revolve, you still went to work, the kids still got fed and the laundry still got done. While he was sick, he stayed home from work and watched slept or watched TV…….just sayin’
Oh my gosh, it’s like you have a crystal ball!
Wait until you get up in your 50s and 60s, then it becomes a laff riot. He’s 66, I’m 57. My Parkinson’s Disease is so NOT as bad as his Diabetes Type II. I can do nothing at all about the dementia and weird sensations and the fact that I’m already legally blind. But, I just go along and agree that his aching knee is the very worst thing I’ve ever heard of. His sugar high and dry mouth, are much worse than my flights to Crazytown, so I just make soothing “There, there, bunny rabbit, it’s okay,” noises. It makes his day. And mine too, for that matter. 🙂 Great post, Lorca!